Moomin Light

Some of the best weeks of the year

Happy time.  Exhausted time.  We've had daily rehearsals since Sunday a week ago (except for last Friday).  Performances are Thursday through Sunday, then we clean everything up and put it away.  We'll be done until next year.*

There the most intense days of the year, and I love them.  Sunday, after the 7 1/2 hour rehearsal, we walked outside, and I was surprised that there was still any light in the sky.  After rehearsals Saturday and Sunday, it felt strange to listen to non-show music on Monday morning.  Life seems more real when I'm at rehearsals - but I also feel like I appreciate things more outside of rehearsals too. 

Another thing I love about these days is that, for the most part, I can be totally myself.  If there's something that needs to be done - volunteer, or, better yet, just do it!  I'm not constantly tiptoeing or second-guessing myself.  There's so much to be done that it's kind of hard to step on toes. 

There's so much to be done that you can do all sorts of things.  A few years ago, when the musical director was working with the teen chorus, I got to teach the music to the adult chorus.  Last year, I painted scenery (I'd never done anything like that before).  Last year I also danced, which was a blast! 

This year, I'm not dancing (I don't tap dance, and it's a tap musical), but I am singing in a little bit as the soprano in an Andrews Sister-type trio.  Since flute was my major activity in high school, and my major in college, I've played solos.  However, though it's not a solo, I've never sung anything like this trio.  I'm always safely anonymous in the second soprano section or the chorus.  I'm excited and nervous!

I also learn things faster as time goes on.  It took a while to learn the first music we got in June even though I worked on it at the piano at home.  I learned the music we got last week in a few days. 

Every year, I realize that I'm my most self-confident during the musical time.  I'm more likely to strike up conversations with strangers and more likely to talk to anyone - I think my posture is even better because I walk taller.  Fortunately, this lasts until sometime in the fall.  Unfortunately, it takes a while to come back so I'm overly cautious for the first week or two of rehearsals. 

Older son says that starting rehearsals again each summer is like going to a family reunion.  I've had a wonderful summer working on the musical with everyone and meeting new people.

Opening night is tonight.  I have all sorts of emotions.  I'm excited but also sad because it means that we're close to the end.  Even though I'd never have the energy to keep up this pace, I don't want it to be over. 

* Well, the average cast member is.  The board members are busy year-round.

Dames at Sea: Orange Community Players

If you're in the Triangle area (or visiting), please come see the Orange Community Players production of Dames at Sea:

It's a 1960's, over-the top homage to the big, lavish musicals of the 1930's and 1940's - with sailors, an ingenue, a diva, a wise-cracking chorus girl, romance, misunderstandings (and make-ups). Opening night is tomorrow. 

It's lots of fun!

Wandering the Biltmore Gardens in the Spring: Part 3...

...which is my favorite part so, even though it's mid-July, I'm going to post it.  

I finally have moved all my photos to the new (and fast!) computer so it will be so much easier to work with them! 

In Part 2, we wandered through the shrub gardens at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC in May.  

We have walked through the azalea gardens a number of times during the year we've had our membership here, but not when the azaleas were blooming.  We were richly rewarded!

    

It sunned up just a few minutes before we got to the azalea gardens.  The colors were wonderful - like walking through a candy box.

I'm not writing much more - really, the flowers speak for themselves.

This series started out, in Part 1, with me being irritated at people who thought the Biltmore Gardens are boring.  If I haven't already shown you enough of why that bothered me, there's one more post to come...

"Raining in My Heart" by Bernadette Peters (and also what's been happening here)

I haven't really taken my netbook out of the house much - in fact, it's mostly taken up residence in younger son's room, because Minecraft, even slow-running on the netbook, is better than no Minecraft.  I brought it along this evening because I haven't blogged much lately - for a few different reasons.

Rehearsals for this summer's community theater production, Dames at Sea started four weeks ago, and we open two weeks from tonight.  They're rehearsing Raining in My Heart, which is one of my favorite songs in the entire, extremely fun, musical. 

Dames at Sea is a late 1960's homage to the big musicals of the 30's and 40's.  It has an ingenue, a wise-cracking chorus girl, a diva, romance, misunderstandings, reconciliations, a Nelson-Eddy/Jeanette MacDonald-style waltz, and, of course...

A wistful rain number. 

Although she started acting professionally at a young age, Bernadette Peter's performance as Ruby, the ingenue, made her a critically acclaimed star.  Here she is singing Raining in My Heart in concert:

Along with the musical, lots more has been going on here.  That's why I'm actually writing during a part of the rehearsal that I'm not involved in.  I don't blog in the evening because by the time I've got time, I'm too tired. 

Because photoblogging and the internet have gotten so slow on my six-year-old computer, we ordered a new computer for me in late May.  It's a computer specifically designed to handle Photoshop easily (apparently it's a memory hog of a program).   Dear husband has spent lots of time getting it set up for me!

Not this week, though - for such a happy reason!

Dear husband started his new job this week.  He started out working for a local company, which was eventually bought by a company in South Carolina, which was eventually bought by a company in Atlanta.  He's been going out-of-state to the company headquarters for over nine years now.  They closed the local office a few years ago so he's been working from home when he's not traveling.  His new company is headquartered in California, but he'll be spending most of his time at the local office. 

I'm so happy he'll be actually working with others at the office rather than always talking on the phone.  [Although, I already really miss having him home to talk to at lunch.]  Great company, great benefits, and he's got so much to learn.

Fun.

We've been trying to get lots of stuff done around the house in the last two weeks because we knew we wouldn't have much time once rehearsals get into high gear and while he's trying to get up to speed at work. 

[They're still working on the harmonies so I'll go on to a book review of a book that has captivated me lately.]

"Octopus's Garden" - Happy Birthday Ringo Starr!

I wasn't really aware of the Beatles until after they broke up (I was only 9).  When I did get to know their music, Ringo became my favorite. 

When I found out that he had turned 72 yesterday, I wondered which song to put on.  I was trying to decide between Oh My My and Photograph - then dear husband walked up and said that Octopus's Garden was his best.

He was right.

This is a 2005 performance with The Roundheads: